My Yoga Mentor Expert Panel

Desirée Rumbaugh
Desirée Rumbaugh teaches from the experiences of more than two decades of practice. She was one of the first students to study with John Friend, and one of the first to be certified in his Anusara method of yoga. As a full-time teacher, Desirée travels the world offering workshops, which are innovative and transformative, challenging and compassionate. She has a well-earned reputation for deepening the most new to the most seasoned practices, through humor balanced with a quest for authenticity. September 2007 marked the release of her first DVD entitled Yoga to the Rescue, which is specially designed for those who have avoided yoga because of a lack of flexibility, low fitness level or chronic pain. Her newest DVD entitled Yoga to the Rescue for Back Pain was released in January 2008 with wide acclaim. For more information, please visit www.desireerumbaugh.com.

Sri Dharma Mittra
Sri Dharma Mittra, who has been teaching since 1967, was the first independent teacher in New York City. In 1984, he created the famous Master Yoga Chart of 908 Postures, which has been an invaluable teaching tool ever since. Dharma is the creator of over 300 postures and the author of the book asanas: 608 Yoga Poses, and is the inspiration for Yoga Journal’s coffee table book, Yoga. His Maha Sadhana DVD set for Level I—A Shortcut to Immortality and Level II—Stairway to Bliss, has been widely acclaimed as a preservation of the main teachings of yoga. Dharma Mittra, A Friend to All, is a biographical book documenting experiences of his students from the 1960s on. Dharma Mittra Yoga Life of a Yogi teacher trainings (200- and 500-hour) are held in New York, San Fransico, and Japan. Dharma also teaches workshops worldwide. For more information, visit to www.dharmayogacenter.com.

Nicki Doane
Nicki Doane had a wanderlust that led her to India in 1991 to study yoga. She went to Mysore to meet Sri K Pattabhi Jois and immediately realized she had found her teacher. Nicki started teaching in 1992. She cites Pattabhi Jois, along with Eddie Modestini, Gabriella Giubilaro, and Tim Miller among her most influential teachers. She is an authorized teacher of Ashtanga Yoga. Although rooted in Ashtanga, Nicki’s teaching goes beyond the traditional. Her classes combine asana, Pranayama, philosophy, and poetry. The emphasis is on awareness: creating integrity within each pose that can be carried beyond the mat into daily life. Nicki lives in Sebastopol, California with her husband, Eddie Modestini. Together, Eddie and Nicki co-direct Maya Yoga Studios in both California and Maui, Hawaii.

*Please note: Due to the large volume of questions we receive, not all questions will be answered. Pedagogy questions are preferred by the experts. Please defer to your own teacher trainers or senior teachers for questions involving serious medical conditions.